Join us for a talk and film screening in celebration of the exhibition ‘Mike Kelley. Vice Anglais’ at Hauser & Wirth London, in collaboration with Mike Kelley Foundation for the Arts.

The event will take place in the South Gallery showroom, with seats being allocated on a first come, first serve basis. The talk will be followed by a book signing and complementary drinks reception. The gallery will remain open throughout the evening.

This is a free event, but we ask that you register in advance so we can understand visitor numbers.

In conversation: ‘Mike Kelley: Materialist Aesthetics and Memory Illusions’ (2024)
5.30 – 6.15 pm

Curator Ralph Rugoff and art historian, critic and author Laura Paniagua will be discussing Mike Kelley’s Extracurricular Activity Projective Reconstruction (EAPR) series (2000 – 2011), alongside the book ‘Mike Kelley: Materialist Aesthetics and Memory Illusions’ (2024, Mousse Publishing).

Drinks reception
6.15 – 6.45 pm

Film screening: ‘Lust for a Vampire’ (1971)
6.45 – 8.30 pm

Mike Kelley was influenced by Hammer Horror films, particularly in relation to his EAPR series (2000 – 2011), including ‘Extracurricular Activity Projective Reconstruction #36 (Vice Anglais)’. One film he referenced was ‘Lust for a Vampire’ (1971), directed by Jimmy Sangster. Set in a fanciful 1970s version of a 19th Century Swiss finishing school, the film mirrors his interest in education and pop culture. The film will be introduced by Hauser & Wirth’s Curatorial Senior Director Tanya Barson. Please note the film is rated 18.

Film screening: ‘Extracurricular Activity Projective Reconstruction #36 (Vice Anglais)’ (2011)
8.30 – 9 pm

Mike Kelley’s ‘Extracurricular Activity Projective Reconstruction #36 (Vice Anglais)’ (2011), centers on six parodic characters, M’Lord, Pile Driver, Skank, Poof and Josette, alongside an allegorical personification, Golden Rod. These characters appear individually in the costume paintings for the video, drawing on the tradition of theatrical character and costume studies. In the video, these protagonists are depicted in a series of scenarios that explore power relations and masculinity and suggest rather than show sexual violence.

About ‘Mike Kelley. Vice Anglais’
Over the course of his four-decade career, Mike Kelley (1954 – 2012) addressed the relation of establishment culture to counterculture. He shed light on social rituals and subcultures, whilst simultaneously parodying the imposition of institutionalized power and instruction. With his Extracurricular Activity Projective Reconstruction (EAPR) series (2000 – 2011), Kelley set out to make 365 videos and video installations, one for each day of the year. The EAPR series came to an early end with ‘Extracurricular Activity Projective Reconstruction #36 (Vice Anglais)’ (2011), one of the last videos Kelley ever made. In collaboration with Mike Kelley Foundation for the Arts, the exhibition centers on this final EAPR, which will be shown alongside related works.

About Laura Lopez Paniagua
Laura Lopez Paniagua is an art critic and historian. Since 2015, López Paniagua has lectured on the subjects of contemporary art, cultures of remembrance, education, philosophy and psychology of art at numerous international universities including: Bard College, Berlin, Germany; Leuphana University, Lüneburg, Germany; Martin-Luther Universität, Halle-Wittenberg, Germany; Barnard College (Columbia University), New York NY; and New York University NY. She is the author of the Mousse Publishing monograph ‘Mike Kelley: Materialist Aesthetics and Memory Illusions’ (2024).

About Ralph Rugoff
Curator Ralph Rugoff has been the Director of the Hayward Gallery in London, UK since 2006. He has curated numerous group exhibitions at the Hayward Gallery, including: ‘The Painting of Modern Life’ (2007); ‘Psycho Buildings’ (2008); and ‘The Infinite Mix’ (2016), as well as major retrospectives and solo exhibitions by Ed Ruscha, Jeremy Deller, Carsten Holler, Tracey Emin and George Condo. In 2019, he was the Curator and Artistic Director of the Venice Biennale, Italy. Rugoff has written art and cultural criticism for numerous periodicals, art magazines and newspapers, including: Artforum; Artpresse; FlashArt; Frieze, Parkett; Grand Street; The Financial Times; The Los Angeles Times; and The Los Angeles Weekly.

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Filming and Photography will take place at this event for use on the Hauser & Wirth website, social media and in other marketing materials.